Imavov defeats Dolidze by Majority Decision at UFC Fight Night
“I try to be as focused as I can,” Imavov told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference. “I try to stay focused on the cage, to stay calm, but sometimes my wild side can happen a little bit. I stayed as focused as I could be focused. I think it’s a lot because of the experience that I got into the cage with the years.”
Nassourdine Imavov now (13-4-0 (1 NC)) defeated Roman Dolidze now (12-3-0) by majority decision at UFC Fight Nigh on February 3rd 2023. Imavov had a great start to the fight, out landing Dolidze in significant strikes by 43 and dropping him in the process in the first round.
As the fight continued on, both seemed to slow down significantly but the damage had already been done to Dolidze. The rest of the fight consisted of a lot of clinching, that is until Imavov landed an illegal head kick to a down Dolidze in the 4th round. The Frenchman then proceeded to get into a verbal altercations with fellow UFC fighter Chris Curtis.
The two would exchange words during and after the fight, apparently still having some issues with each other after their bout ended in a No Contest back in June of 2023. The illegal kick caused referee Herb Dean to take a point from Imavov, making the scorecards much closer than the fight would have you believe.
The judges scored the contest, Derek Cleary 44 – 49, Ron McCarthy 47 – 47, Sal D’amato 46 – 48. The two actually sane scorecards being in favor of Imavov. I have no idea how Ron McCarthy saw this fight as a draw personally. The Frenchman was in control almost the entire time, with most offense from Dolidze being clinch work against the cage with no takedowns or any movement whatsoever.
Significant strikes at the end of the fight were also in favor of Imavov, at 154 to 59 total landed. Overall, this was a pretty uneventful fight with a few good moments. Imavov is still a great prospect in the division and I am excited to his next bout.
